New Orleans Reconstruction Plans Run Into Resistance

Down in New Orleans, more than a few people are steaming mad about the reconstruction plans for New Orleans that predicate rebuilding of the most affected areas on the ability of the communities to form plans with sufficient backing to rebuild, but they can't accomplish that without first having the people back in the first place.

Others vowing to fight the plan include City Council members, the New Orleans chapter of the NAACP and former mayor and National Urban League president Marc Morial.

The NAACP said it would be unfair not to allow residents to rebuild and questioned suggestions that some areas of the city should not be rebuilt because they are not "sustainable."

Seems to me that someone may be laying the groundwork for another run at Mayor. Of course, given Whiplash Nagin's record on the hurricane, I think that nearly anyone running against him could win, though it would appear that moral and ethical lapses under Morial's tenure could hinder that effort.

Despite residents' complaints, the rebuilding recommendations have actually been characterized as too liberal and unrealistic by many urban planners. The Urban Land Institute and other planners have said it would be unsafe and unwise to rebuild those sections of the city where the flooding reached rooftops and which could be flooded again by another hurricane.

Nagin is expected to have all proposals in hand on Jan. 20. He then can approve or reject the recommendations. The plan is expected, though, to be presented to President Bush, who asked early on that Orleanians come up with a vision for rebuilding the city.

This isn't surprising in the least. Considering that more effort is being expended on 'economic development' projects instead of rebuilding critical infrastructure - the levees themselves, one has to wonder where this is all headed.

On a more positive note, discarded Christmas trees will be used to help reclaim marshlands damaged by the 2005 hurricane season.